Photo: factanimal.com
One chef from Peru had one hell of a time convincing TSA agents he wasn’t up to anything bad, when they caught him with 40 frozen piranhas in his luggage, flying into LAX.
The incident translated into a 5-hour delay for Virgilio Martinez, owner and chef at Central restaurant in Lima, Peru, and star of season 3 of Netflix’s “Chef’s Table” series. He flew into the Los Angeles International Airport with a very special cargo – one that ultimately brought him into some trouble.
He had bought, frozen and vacuum-sealed 40 piranhas for a special food festival in Los Angeles, he tells the Los Angeles Times. He imagined he’d raise a few eyebrows with the TSA, but he didn’t quite picture himself spending 5 full hours trying to convince the agents that he wasn’t doing anything out of the ordinary.
“I was extremely obsessed about bringing piranhas because we serve piranhas in the Amazon at Central, so I said, ‘Guys, why not take a risk to bring piranhas to L.A.?’” Martinez says. “You probably have preconceived notions about piranhas because of movies, but for me, piranhas, we go fish them.”
The agents who looked inside his bag had the same preconceived notions, he says. He spent 5 hours trying to explain to them that what he was doing was his job, i.e. cooking the fish for people. In the end, they let him through.
“I told him that it was from my heart and showed him a few photos,” Martinez explains. “I took my book and said, ‘Look, this is what I want to do with the piranhas.’ And he finally said, ‘Oh, wow, go ahead.’”
Seeing how Martinez is a chef, he probably made sure the piranhas were handled and transported in good conditions, so don’t think he stuffed them in his carry-on. As for the delay at the airport once he touched down, it was only to be expected: because many people would bring anything they can later sell, the agents needs to make sure it doesn’t happen on their watch.
He had bought, frozen and vacuum-sealed 40 piranhas for a special food festival in Los Angeles, he tells the Los Angeles Times. He imagined he’d raise a few eyebrows with the TSA, but he didn’t quite picture himself spending 5 full hours trying to convince the agents that he wasn’t doing anything out of the ordinary.
“I was extremely obsessed about bringing piranhas because we serve piranhas in the Amazon at Central, so I said, ‘Guys, why not take a risk to bring piranhas to L.A.?’” Martinez says. “You probably have preconceived notions about piranhas because of movies, but for me, piranhas, we go fish them.”
The agents who looked inside his bag had the same preconceived notions, he says. He spent 5 hours trying to explain to them that what he was doing was his job, i.e. cooking the fish for people. In the end, they let him through.
“I told him that it was from my heart and showed him a few photos,” Martinez explains. “I took my book and said, ‘Look, this is what I want to do with the piranhas.’ And he finally said, ‘Oh, wow, go ahead.’”
Seeing how Martinez is a chef, he probably made sure the piranhas were handled and transported in good conditions, so don’t think he stuffed them in his carry-on. As for the delay at the airport once he touched down, it was only to be expected: because many people would bring anything they can later sell, the agents needs to make sure it doesn’t happen on their watch.
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